Runaway Demon
by Panik22
Summary: How would Naruto's life look like if he had given into his despair and fled Konoha the day of his failiure to gradute from the ninja academy.
1. Chapter 1: The Great Run

**The Great Run**

"You are the Nine Tailed Demon Fox." Mizuki revealed to the boy before him. A glimmer of sadistic joy in his eyes as Naruto flinched, his face set in an expression of shock. The betraying ninja kept his gaze on the boy and judging by his stillness the right time to strike him down had arrived. The Forbidden Scroll would be his and Orochimaru would be please to receive such a gift from him. An oversized shuriken held in his hand flashed in motion as it was hurled in the direction of the young and motionless jinchuuriki aimed at its throat, a killing strike.

To both his and Iruka's surprises, the projectile struck nothing but the bare ground where the boy had stood, Naruto's blurry form had dashed and avoided the Shuriken before sprinting deeper into the forest outskirting Konoha, soon disappearing in the darkness of the evening. Both remaining ninjas stood still, their mind's trying to understand what had happened. One moment, Naruto had been standing motionless and dumbstruck when the next he had displayed incredible speed, much greater than he had ever shown in his days at the academy, and simply fled the area maintaining the incredible speed.

The instant passed and both ninja's gave chase, a competition to catch up with the jinchuuriki and the forbidden scroll the boy still held on to. Iruka shuddered at the idea of what incredible techniques the scroll held and at what would happen to his student if he would be caught by the traitor Mizuki. Determined not to let that happen, Iruka threw several kunais at the betraying ninja aimed for several key muscles and tendons of his legs, a strike to any of them would stop or severely slow down anybody. Unfortunately not a single one landed as Mizuki substituted himself and left a clone to bear the barrage of kunais dispelling at the first hit leaving a puff of smoke in its place. Mizuki was nowhere in sight.

Iruka kept running but now his attention diverted to any possible movement and hiding spot that his adversary could use to ambush him, the other ninja however was still unseen and this filled Iruka's muscles with dreading tension. Iruka didn't like his odds, nonetheless he still sprinted down the forest floor in chase of Naruto, hopeful he might catch his student first.

There were too many distractions to be taken into consideration and Iruka wasn't willing to slow down, he had to reach first. Pushing his muscle further their normal velocity, using chakra to minimize prevent lasting damage, the faithful Konoha Academy instructor blurred in rapid motion down the trail left by his careless student. It was a gamble but he was sure that his speed would prove enough to reach Naruto.

A clearing came quickly into view and, knowing better than to dash into it would be imprudent, as it offered a perfect ambush location, Iruka's hands formed a seal and soon a nearly perfect copy of himself appeared by the teachers two separated, the clone racing through the clearing while the real stood by its edge ready to perform a substitution technique and take his construct's place once across the empty space. Through the clone's eyes Iruka saw something laying motionless at the center of the clearing and as soon as the distance gap reduced Iruka recognized his student unique jumpsuit, only it was no longer orange but stained in scarlet from several wounds that adorned the boy.

Kneeling closer, Iruka saw a rather severe cut on Naruto's chest still wet in blood but noticeably the fluid no longer gushed out of the grievous wound and that meant he had been too late. He felt tempted pick the wounded corpse from the ground but the sudden ruffle of leaves from one side of the clearing picked Iruka's interest and he let his killing intent fill the area as he craved for Mizuki's painfully slow death. The outburst lasted barely a second before, in a quick and very sudden move the corpse closed the short distance between its kunai wielding right hand and Iruka's throat sinking the weapon deep, past bones and cartilage and tearing the spinal cord.

Iruka's body went limp and hang there while a wicked smirk stretched across Naruto's pale corpse face before smoke enveloped his figure and from it emerged Mizuki bearing the same smirk. It was short lived as Iruka's body vanished in a similar gust of smoke only to reveal a short wicked Class 3 Explosive Tag that took the time for Mizuki's brain to work through the deception to go off lighting the sky with a quickly dying flash of fire and smoke. The bare grass and stones of the clearing turned red as bits and pieces of the traitor sprayed all around the surface..

From the branch on which he kneeled Iruka allowed himself to smile at the gruesome sight, the bastard was dead. As he leapt from his hiding spot using his chakra enhanced muscle to catch up to Naruto's crazy escape the academy teacher felt his right leg go limp and as he landed he found himself quickly approaching the floor unable to stay on his feet. Looking down at his legs Iruka saw a bloody wound on his right thigh and it dawned on him that Mizuki's kunais had been laced with poison. A toxin that now flew at a rapid pace through his overly excited and chakra sped circulatory system. Few seconds later Iruka went limp and soon after his vision went black.

* * *

Naruto redoubled his effort as he ran through the forest away from the village that despised him so much and hearing the loud bang come from not so far away drew greater adrenaline induced strength from his muscles making his already staggering pace turning frightening. Twigs and gravel loudly crunched as he stepped on them during his escape, careless of the noise they produced. His heart ached, not from the strain of the excessive physical exercise, nor from the dark demon dwelling in his soul, but from the years and years of abuse, mistreatment and constant neglect that the people and shinobis of Konoha had perpetrated on him.

His childhood years had been spent ignoring the mistreatment he received holding on to the stupid notion that the village was like a family. It was true yet his naivete had refused to realise the fact that nobody regarded him as a part of it, for every grown man and woman and their children alike hated his very existence. Now that he knew about the Nine Tail his hopeful mind ceased to cloud his judgement and he accepted the reality his heart had known all along.

The pain slowly subsided as something in the back of his mind stirred and whispered, every single word bearing a familiar nuance, and power he didn't recognize filled his flimsy limbs and brought the already speeding scenery around him to a furious blur. No matter the mind boggling velocity he moved Naruto, for the first time in a long time, felt truly in control, conscious of every tree, rock or animal in his trajectory and able to calibrate his body to avoid the obstacles. In a matter of minutes the noises that his clumsy legs and feet had produced at the beginning of his flight ceased and, like them, the forest of Konoha thinned and eventually disappeared from his view.

* * *

Sasuke walked down Konoha's main street with both hands in inside his pockets as he made his way home to his apartment after a long training session in the old Uchiha estate. As he walked past the gates of the empty neighborhood he felt the skin of his sweaty arms shiver as the early evening air had began to cool down. Regardless he maintained his leisurely pace avoiding and ignoring every person that crossed him on the road. Some would try to make eye contact just to give their reverence to the last Uchiha while other tried to befriend him, either group angered Sasuke because neither acknowledge his desire to be left alone.

"Sasuke-san" A girly shout brought an involuntary twitch to one of his eyes as he recognized the voice. That was his bane, his most annoying stalker, a girl that yelled the words 'true' and 'love' but knew the real meaning of neither, in short she was Sakura Haruno. The poor girl deluded herself that one day he might decide she was good enough to bare his children and would marry her but that was so far from the truth. In fact, he decided, he would make sure that it would never happen, beginning, by avoiding her presence and ignore her whenever he had to be in the same room with her. "Sasuke-san," she said again this time using a more appropriate volume. "Hi, I was wondering, would you like t..."

"No" Sasuke interrupted her from finishing her question knowing already too well what she was going to ask. A date between them was an absurd dream. He continued walking taking no note of the girl's slight pout and the following barrage of words, questions, and useless information about her day. As her annoying voice bordered his ears he felt glad that, today, both had graduated from the academy. He couldn't care less about the girl's accomplishment but now that both had graduated it would mean they'd be assigned to teams reducing the time he had to bare her annoying presence as they'd be too busy training with their respective senseis. . The thought of the occurrence they be teamed together crossed Sasuke's mind but, after a shudder went down his spine, he dismissed it as impossible. No body was so unlucky.

The sudden blur of colors in quick motion drew him from his pondering and his eyes fell onto a set of three ANBUs running at dangerous speed on the roof tops of the nearby building. Their mastery of _Body Flicker_ left him in slight awe and he spent few moments observing the trio run to their destination. His awe grew as a further when another ten ANBUs followed the first group all flickering from place to place without of pause or hand seals. "Do you think something is bad is going on?" A voice came from his side, a slight accent of fear amongst the words. "I doubt it." He responded simply out of instinct as his mind was still focused on the large group of ANBUs. Immediately he curse as he realized whom had ask the question and moments later Sakura began her words barrage against Sasuke's ears.

* * *

An ANBU in his prostrate form appeared at the feet of the Third Hokage as the old man held his hand over the crystal ball, instrument for his renown Telescope Technique. His eyes glazed by a thin sheet of moist as if a tear was about to roll from the corners of his eyes. Immediately the man rose his head as the image on the crystal slowly disappeared in a raging red haze. With impassive tone the Hokage spoke. "Report, Crow-1"

"We have cleared and secured the sector of the forest where the accident took place." His voice ran, its tone and gender disguised by the porcelain mask that hid his face. "We also had found Iruka-san and the remains of Mizuki. Iruka-san escaped the incident with minor wounds but an acute poisoning, possibly fatal, but on site medical treatment stabilized his system and allowed his transportation to the Hospital for further and final medical treatment. Three ANBUs, namely Frog-5, Dog-12, and Rat-2 have been stationed outside of his room ready to bring him to T&I division for further details on the accident when his condition will allow it."

The Hokage nodded only once, the authority in his position clearly making any other gesture needless. After an appropriated and respectful wait Crow continued, his voice steady and inexpressive. "Two group of eight of our trackers have been sent to retrieve the Forbidden Scroll and the fugitive jinchuuriki. We have sent some of our best and fastest, all from Sigma Division. Eagle-2 and Dog-1 are each leading a group. Their last report suggested that the task will be completed shortly due to abundant clues left by the fugitive. Also, upon analysis of his foot prints the fugitive has been moving at slightly above average speed however the trackers, are faster, and will have no problem to close the distance."

With the conclusion of his report the ANBU once again kneeled bringing his head a mere centimeter from the wooden floor of the Hokage's office and there he waited for any further order from the renown shinobi. After a moment of silence, the Hokage shift in his chair and cleared his voice. "You may leave now."

Without waiting an instant longer the Crow flickered out of the office leaving behind nothing but a single tiny ring of pale white smoke, a great remark in his skill in the essential ninja skill. Left alone, Sarutobi Hiruzen allowed his body to let go of his authority and rested his bones in his chair like any normal old man would. The thin film of water returned to his eyes moments after he tried. in vain, to use his Telescope Technique on Naruto. The pristine surface of the ball had shimmered as the Hokage's chakra flood the sphere but a moment later every inch of the crystal surface had turned dark red. Hiruzen was sure that something bad had happened that day but all his thought were instead focused on remembering the young boy and the pain the Hokage had seen on Naruto's face as he fled from the village. With a well practiced motion Hiruzen brought his pipe to his mouth and inhaled, the embers at the end of the pipe lighting in red, before the man let the smoke out moulding it into several rings, one smaller than the next. That day had been long indeed.


	2. Chapter 2: Knowledge and Thrills

**Knowledge and Thrills**

The sunlight warmth was a welcomed feeling when Naruto came back to his senses. The boy unconsciously expected his body to ache and revolt against him but weirdly it felt fine almost as if he had not just a marathon. Actually it felt better than ever before.

He remained sitting where he was, leaning against a rocky wall, as his eyes scanned both his body and everything around him. He immediately noticed how his sandals looked worn and on the verge of breaking and he wondered just how far had he run during his trance-like escape from Konoha. His original intentions were to clear the forest around the village and camp out there for awhile, at least until he felt better, but his sandal wouldn't look so worn out. Almost as if to answer the question of his internal monologue the sound of crashing waves called his attention to the light breeze that ran over him carrying the salty smell of the sea.

Naruto stood in hurry, ignoring the Scroll that fell from his lap as he did so, and walked towards the sound. The more steps he took the louder the waves seemed to crash and eventually he stood at edge of a rocky plateau, few meter below him the sea shimmered underneath the early afternoon sun. With a gasp, Naruto gawked from side to side, immediately noticing the hazy contours of an island far off on his right. He tried to find out where he was from the telltales sign of the area but nothing recognizable caught his eyes. A curse escaped his mouth as he realized he had no clue where or how far from Konoha he was. Maybe if he had paid more attention to his geography class in the academy he might have known.

Resigned the young boy returned to his initial spot away from the salty sea breeze and took a seat next to the ominous Forbidden Scroll. He eyed the worn and old paper parchment with guilt. He was a thief, he had taken something that wasn't his, and for a moment he thought he should dispose of it but with nothing else to do except retracing his steps and return to Konoha, something he was not ready to do yet, reading the scroll would be the only alternative to let time pass. He had stolen it and he might aswell take full advantage of it his punishment would be the same regardless.

Naruto's hands tremble as he reached for and unrolled the scroll. Soon after his gaze danced from word to word snooping for a new jutsu only to realize he was looking again to the ink writing describing the clone technique he had learn the night before. _Multiple Shadow Clone_ was a cool technique but it didn't have the explosive and awesome flair that Naruto wanted to achieve as a ninja. He was about to dismissed it to check out the next recorded jutsu when some part of him reasoned, telling him he had learnt the jutsu but he was far from mastering it. With a resigned sigh, he began his study of the text wall that described _Multiple Shadow Clone_ Technique.

When he learnt the kinjutsu, the day before, he had gone over the hand-seals required, ignoring the theory and literature behind it, and after several hundreds trials he had managed to be successful, creating over a hundred fully formed and able Narutos ready to obey his will. He thought that was an achievement but as he read the Forbidden Scroll he realised how much further the paticular technique could be pushed, the information brought a wicked smile of joy on his lips.

Many words in there were archaic or too difficult and long to be understood by a shinobi below A-class but Naruto was able to understand the general lines set down by the original master of the _Multiple Shadow Clone Technique_. Other than it's more than obvious military application the jutsu created a proper human body, capable of learning and using chakra much like the user. Clones could practise skills as any real person would and, when dispelled, the training experience they worked through would go to the user. In fewer words, _Multiple Shadow Clone Technique_ was an easy way to learn and improve techniques and skill but Naruto would not have to do any of the actual hard work. A giggle escaped the boy's lips when he finished the paragraph as before his eyes he pictured hundreds of his clones busy practising several techniques under the sun while their master stood resting by the side under the cool shade of a tree.

The next section, although not as awesome as the first, described subtle changes to the seals giving different appearance to the clones, other than the user's original look, from other people looks to that of rocks, trees and animals. Naruto thought it uninteresting at first but eventually he discovered he could reproduce the effect of a _Transformation_ on his clones simply by adding the appropriate seals for the technique during the clone jutsu hand seal sequence, a useful trick to save time.

Another useful tweak could, just by twisting his pinky and thumb of the left hand during the second seal, make his clones withstand far more than one blow before dispelling. The durability depended, of course, on the amount of chakra used for the formation and it came at the cost of reduced numbers. A slightly louder giggle left Naruto as he imagined the stupor on his enemies as his clones survived their attacks seemingly unharmed.

Looking up from the scroll still with a large smile of his face, Naruto felt his belly grunt in hunger and the boy suddenly craved for several bowls of delicious ramen. The thought let out more noise from his belly and in cue the boy stood and flashed through a slightly altered hand-seal sequence he was dying to try out and four puffs of smoke produced four still forms, all resembling Naruto.

"_Multiple Shadow Clone Technique_," he cried and seeing the quartet of clones he continued with accomplishment in his tone. "On the first try! I'm awesome!" All four clones bent over clasping at their belly, an expression of pain on their faces, until red foam poured out of their mouths and noses and a loud crack dispelled them in unison leaving Naruto's jaw slack and hanging wide open in shock. His joy had been brief.

"Crap," Naruto muttered as distant feelings of agony crept in his head, all coming from the now gone chakra constructs. With a sigh he formed another set of seals, this time without any alterations, and a dozen Narutos appeared before him. He wanted to make only four but twelve was still a good number. They all knew what to do and wasted no time standing dumbly around. Quickly four ran to gather wood, freshwater, and food while the others remained in the plateau to begin practising the new _Multiple Shadow Clone Technique_ variation. Leaving the real Naruto free to laid down under the shade to relax with a content smile on his face. Soon he'll have a nice barbeque to fill his belly up, not as good as ramen but good enough to keep him in a good shape.

* * *

A foot poked the soft and squishy side of his belly and immediately Naruto jumped up and glared at whoever had jabbed his side only to see in front of him one of his clones and the slowly setting sun in the sky behind the construct. The clone dispelled without a warning and Naruto's mind was flooded with a great number of memories and images that the clone had gathered during his short lifetime making the boy sure that his breakfast, lunch, and dinner were waiting for him.

A few steps out of his resting spot a small fire burnt and its wood crackled as its flames roast a bunch of skewered wild rabbits. All the other clones had dispelled long ago leaving only one to cook Naruto's meal and now it was ready and the smell of a barbequed meal made Naruto's mouth water. Eyeing the rabbit that looked ready to eat like a hungry wolf, he grabbed skewer and tore a solid mouthful from the animal's tight. The hot flesh burnt his tongue and palate but it still tasted delicious. He waited a while for the meal to cool before taking the next bite, by then his minor burns were healed and his taste bud fully appreciated the meaty flavour of his meal.

Minutes later twelve sticks and animal carcases laid around Naruto as the boy patted his full belly while six more animals still roasted on the charcoals of the fire. They would become his breakfast tomorrow. By then the sun was set and darkness had fallen around the plateau making Naruto feel alone. The crescent moon was in the sky but its light wasn't enough to provide any comfort and soon Naruto created three copies of himself just to fill the silence of the night with chattering and noise. He aimed to make only one clone but his lacking chakra control had the jutsu overfire.

This was his first time out of the Village and away from from the constant voices of the citizens of Konoha. To say the truth it was nothing like he had imagined. There was nobody with him to keep him company and he wasn't a ninja and he had no amazing sensei to train him. The reality was far from what he dreamed. This was the real world, not a child's dream. The discomfort though soon faded as the constant bickering of his clones eased his loneliness.

A ruffling of leaves drew his and his clones' attention away from their arguments towards the shadows around them. With a deliberate hand gesture Naruto sent one his clones towards the noise and the construct dove deep into the darkness disappearing from sight. Moments later another noise broke the silence and like before Naruto sent a clone to check it out. Not before long a third noise, this time a louder one, made Naruto sit up and hand the last remaining clone a branch lit ablaze with fire and the construct dashed in the direction of the last noise he heard leaving Naruto alone by the fire once again.

Minutes passed while his clones scanned the surroundings to investigate the noises. From time to time Naruto would concentrate on one of his clone while he remained motionless and his eyes would see whatever the clone was looking at. It was an interesting little trick that Naruto hadn't seen in the Forbidden Scroll but had stumbled upon it by mistake during his training that day.

One clone was walking in the pitch black of night stumbling on rocks or fallen branches he failed to see. The construct fall repeatedly brought a smile on Naruto's face, for once glad of not being the one falling. The last trip to the floor had been quite violent and the clone was swearing aloud while he picked himself off the rocky ground. He did not manage to get up as vicious grip tighten around his throat and a heavy body slammed against his bringing it once again to the floor while the muscle of his neck twitched in pain as several sharp canines pierced his skin drawing copious amount of the clone's blood. As agony spread and filled the clone, it dispelled and Naruto received the full impact of its memories making the boy snarl in anger.

* * *

The third Hokage concentrated reading a bulky financial report from Konoha's statistic center when Crow-1 flickered into the room, again assuming the prostrate position of respect opposite to mahogany desk. In his right hand the ANBU held a brown, paper bound, message that bore a bright red wax seal. Whatever information was on the letter it was destined for the Hiruzen's eyes only, it was important village business.

The Hokage kept reading the report on his desk as if the ninja hadn't appeared but his right hand signaled the ANBU to place the letter on his desk next to a tall pile of documents in need of the Hokage approving signature. The man complied without hesitation but, even though the letter had been delivered, he remained in the room waiting for the legendary ninja's attention. "Anything else?" Inquired Hiruzen as he looked to his underling with an eyebrow risen in questioning.

"Sir," Crow-1 began as he stood straighter under the scrutiny of the older man. "Eagle-2 and Dog-1 have returned."

* * *

Shock shot through Naruto has he felt his clone died and one of his hand reached for his neck to check for wounds and stayed there until he realized that what he felt was simply a memory. Abandoning the phantom pain, his hands joined to form seals in quick succession and more clones appeared by his side. One immediately picked the nearest fiery branch and followed his gruesomely murdered brethren's footsteps towards his attacker paying attention not to trip and fall flat like his predecessor.

With haste, he reached the spot and using the light from the branch scanned the area for the enemy, he saw no trace of his attacked. Something drew his attention and immediately he dashed towards it and found himself chasing something through the forest. Other clones soon joined him the chase as in turn they left the real Naruto all holding their own torch. Seconds later five clones surrounded, in a large circle, a relatively large bush all aware that something lurked hidden by its leaves.

In unison, they stepped forward and a dark furred wolf jumped out swiping towards the nearest clone, only missing it as the Naruto evaded. All the clones smirked seeing the trapped animal. Any normal man or woman might have been threaten by the wild beast but a shinobi had nothing to worry. The clones were about to give it an escape route when leaves all around them loudly ruffled and several growls joined the snarl of the surrounded animal. Moments later several larger wolves appeared from the darkness bearing their sharp canines as they eyed their prey.

A quick count saw the pack out number Naruto's clone and the boy understood his eminent defeat. The original Naruto brought the palm of his hand to his face as he realized that a pack of wild wolves had outsmarted him. With contemplative sight he dispelled his clones before the 'enemy' could claim their victory and the act made him feel pitiful like a sore loser. He thought he was smarter than that.

More dry branches joined on the fire after Naruto recalled Iruka-sensei's classes about surviving the wilderness. Many wild animals feared fire and would not dare approach a camp lit by one. Soon all the thin logs caught flame and the fire enlarged making Naruto feel more at ease. He did not want to murder the animals needlessly but he would defend himself if they attacked and the young ninja had an army of clones just few hand seals away.

One of the clones he hadn't dispelled, his batch, returned, still holding the burning torch he took for his chase. The construct took a seat next to the fire directly across the original Naruto and casted his torch back onto the burning charcoals. "Boss," the clone spoke up, "get some sleep. I'll keep us safe." Both Naruto's smiled before the real one placed the Forbidden Scroll next to him and laid down using the thick roll as a cushion. It took a while but eventually he slipped into a light sleep feeling confident that his clone would keep him safe.

* * *

"What the do you mean 'left no traces or scent'?" The Hokage yelled towards his 'best' ANBU trackers. In a less formal circumstance he would swear at such failure but right now he represented the will of Konoha and he refrained from using coarse language. "He is just a boy! How can he have eluded you?"

The angry intent exuding the legendary shinobi made everyone in the office hunch slightly and feeling like they had lost few inches of height. The two captains stood motionless, almost frozen, as the power of the Hokage scrambled their brains momentarily.

"Hokage-sama," Eagle-2 spoke, his voice sounding very weak even under the distortion produced by his mask. "we followed the trail left by the fugitive but the more distance we covered the less evident the signs of his passage became. I have never seen anything like it, even from an A-rank shinobi. I can't believe that a thirteen year old boy could elude us. Even his chakra signature was completely gone, I couldn't find it anywhere." The ANBU lowered his head as he recalled his failure in front of the most respected and knowledgeable man in Konoha

"Hokage-sama, If I may I'd like to apologize for my underlings failure and I'd like to ask permission to be sent out after the fugitive." Eagle-1, the absolute best and captain of the tracking division of the ANBUs, said from behind her silver mask.

"I am afraid that won't help" Hiruzen responded with a more calm tone. "If the boy avoided Dog-2's skills there's little you'll be able to do, especially now that his trail has gone cold, Captain." The ANBU tracker shuffled as the legendary shinobi concluded but said nothing as the Hokage had clearly decided. "The only thing left is for us to wait. To hope for the boy to come back." He did not know when or if that would ever happen but given the rumors rising in the region, Hiruzen and Konoha didn't have the raw manpower required for a long range search. If indeed several smaller villages on the borders of the Land of Fire had been attacked by foreign shinobi forces a war between Hidden Villages was brewing and might start at any moment notice.

"You may now leave." Hiruzen ordered after taking a long and ceremonious drag from his pipe. "Leave word that I may not be disturbed for the rest of the evening."

* * *

Sasuke sat on a bridge all alone and in terrible mood. Like usual he had arrived at the designated spot on time for his meeting with his new team and new sensei but everybody else was yet to arrive. They wasted his time with their incompetence, time he could have used to train and become stronger.

Unimportant people walked past him but none of them was worth his attention, not unless they wore a jonin vest and so far nobody had. With a discontentful groan, the boy looked once more to his wristwatch then checked the message that Iruka-sensei had passed on to every graduating student. On the card were written a location and a precise time while all the other details for the next part of their shinobi training had been deliberately left out.

Sasuke played with the plain white rectangle of paper as he resigned to waste more of his time waiting for his team only to notice that something about the message was off. The writing on it looked different from before, little details, but something about it was odd. He was sure that the card had never left him and that nobody could have swapped it. That left only one possibility. He looked up from the message directing his eyes towards the sun and the last Uchiha found it on the wrong side of the sky and that was proof that a genjutsu affected him.

Sasuke drew a kunai from his pouch and dragged its sharp end across his arm, lightly not to cause lasting damage but with enough weight behind it to form a long thin cut that immediately began to bleed. As the first nerve complained of pain everything around him blurred and turned foggy soon fading away to reveal the real world hidden behind the illusion. Two people stood next to him that were not there before. The first was a young pale girl with dark blue hair and the blank white eyes characteristic of the Hyuuga family, she was Hinata. The other was an older woman with long brown hair and intense red eyes that stared directly into his but the more notable of her characteristics was the jonin vest the woman wore. Both women looked at Sasuke almost waiting for him to say something until the older woman broke their silence.

"Now that both of you are out of the genjutsu, I'll introduce myself" she said with a slight smile on her face, "I'm Kurenai Yuuhi and I'll be your jonin instructor. You both have passed my preliminary test and that's a good beginning." Her eyes focused on Hinata and the girl almost disappeared behind the collar of her oversized coat, obviously expecting the worst. "Hinata, you have done remarkably well. You needed only few second to notice my illusion and to find a way out of it." The teacher then flashed an encouraging smile to the Hyuuga heir and the girl visibly relaxed. Then the jonin turned her eyes towards Sasuke.

"Sasuke, right?" She began implying she knew little of who he was. "You took a lot longer than your teammate and even when you realized you were trapped in genjutsu you had to use an extreme method to escape it." Kurenai evaluation left Sasuke in slight shock but before he could speak the woman grabbed both of his and Hinata's arm and walked with quick pace away from the bridge.

"Now I'll test your cognitive skills." Without further details their sensei began asking the ninja duo several complicated questions that challenged their judgement and their listening skills however Sasuke paid little attention at what the woman said as his eyes scanned the time displayed by his wristwatch. Twenty minutes, that was the time he had needed to even noticed the genjutsu, more than enough for an enemy to strike him down.

"Sasuke-kun," The candid voice of Hinata called and Sasuke glanced in her direction. "I believe our Sensei has tried to trick us again." Both of Sasuke's eye brows rose in disbelief at hearing the news and he analysed every detail of what he was seeing yet noticed nothing off.

"It's not a genjutsu." Hinata's voice once again called the Uchiha's attention to the pale girl who had stopped walking and was staring at Kurenai. "It's a clone."

In cue with the Hyuuga heir's statement the woman smiled and gave both a slight nod. "Good job, Hinata. Now, you too will have to find me." A smoke cloud enveloped the jonin and the clone vanished leaving Sasuke and Hinata staring at the spot where Kurenai used to be. For the second time that day Sasuke did not feel like a Uchiha prodigy but like the Academy deadlast.


End file.
